My younger brother Lü Fengxian

Chapter 256: Hun Movements
"I feel relieved to see that my brother-in-law is safe and sound."

"I just wonder how my sister is doing?"

"I heard that my sister gave birth to a little nephew for me. I wonder if my brother-in-law brought him along when he went to the frontier this time?"

Hartler looked at Lu Yi's silly smile and pulled Lu Yi to chat about family matters.

"Haha, you silly boy, your nephew is not even one year old yet, how can you take him on a long journey?"

Lu Yi smiled and ruffled Hartler's hair, then chatted with him casually for a while.

His adoptive father-in-law Hexutuo then came from afar with a group of dignitaries from the Hunye tribe.

"You rascal, why don't you wait for your father? He is old now, you should take better care of him."

Lu Yi looked at Hexutuo, whose health had deteriorated significantly after not seeing him for a year and who felt a little exhausted after walking a short distance. He said a word of concern to Hatler and took the initiative to greet him.

"Hehe, isn't it because I miss my brother-in-law too much?"

Hartler behind him straightened his hair that was messed up by Lu Yi, then followed with a silly smile on his face.

"My dear son-in-law, you must be very tired after the long journey."

As soon as Hexutou saw Lu Yi, he welcomed him from afar.

His hair and beard were all white, and his body was not as straight as it was a year ago, and looked a little hunched.

But his plump cheeks and body told Lu Yi that he must have been living a pretty good life during this period.

"After I learned that my son-in-law was coming, I prepared the hottest wine and the most delicious roasted lamb legs in the tent. Of course..."

He Xutuo stepped forward and held Lu Yi's hand tightly, then enthusiastically led him towards the Hunye tribe's camp.

"There will certainly be no shortage of the hottest women. Tonight, we will make sure that our son-in-law and distinguished guests from afar will be satisfied and use the tenderness of our grassland women to wash away the hardships along the way."

"Cough cough..."

Lu Yi thought the first few words the old man said seemed quite normal, but as he continued to speak he started to become frivolous, so he coughed lightly to remind him.

"Thank you, father-in-law, for coming out to the camp to welcome me. The wine and food are fine, but should we forget about this woman? After all, I am Qiqige's husband now..."

He was stunned at first when he heard that, then he waved his hands nonchalantly.

"My dear son-in-law, you have finally come to my grassland. You don't have to strictly abide by the etiquette of the Han people."

"It's normal for a man to have three wives and four concubines. He's just playing with a few women. Even if Qiqige knew about it, she wouldn't dare to say anything. Otherwise, I'll teach her a lesson!"

"Cough cough..."

However, Lu Yi still found it difficult to adapt to his father-in-law's magnanimity.

"Even if Qiqige has no objection, my son-in-law's wife is a Han Chinese woman from the Zhang family, so she may not be able to accept it..."

"Oh oh oh..."

He Sutuo slapped his forehead when he heard this, and then he reacted as if he had just woken up from a dream.

"Look at my memory. It's getting worse and worse as I get older."

"But the son-in-law can keep himself clean, but he must not restrain the heroes he brought with him!"

"These are all gifts from the Hunye tribe. It is a small sin to ignore my reputation, but it is a big sin to treat guests from afar with indifference!"

However, Hesuto was still unwilling to give up this great opportunity to improve the bloodline of his clan.

The one thousand soldiers brought by Lu Yi were all tall and sturdy men from the north.

With the blood of these people, the Hunye tribe will be able to give birth to many offspring with excellent physiques in the coming year, which are the capital for the growth of the Hunye tribe.

Hesuto naturally didn't want to miss it.

"Just follow my father-in-law's instructions..."

Lu Yi was also unwilling to deprive his subordinates of their rare benefits.

When he was in the Han area, he exercised strict control over his generals and ordered them not to harass the civilians.

Now that we have come all the way to the grassland, we might as well adapt to the local customs and let these young men loosen their belts.

After Lu Yi led a thousand men and followed Hexutuo into the Hunye tribe, he immediately discovered that his father-in-law seemed to have a lot more wealth.

Not only is the number of tents several times more than when we parted last year.

Even the number of cattle, sheep, supplies and population increased significantly.

For a famous general like Lu Yi who is proficient in military operations, he can tell at a glance from the number of tents that the current population of the Hunye tribe is definitely no less than 10,000.

A population of 10,000 is nothing in the Han area.

Pick out any wealthy county in the Central Plains and you'll find that the number of households alone is more than tens of thousands, not to mention the population.

However, the grassland is different from the Central Plains.

In the Central Plains, ten acres of land can feed a Han Chinese who is good at farming.

But on the grassland, an average of one thousand acres of land was needed to support one Hu person who was good at grazing.

Therefore, although the area of ​​the grassland is not smaller than that of the Central Plains, it is even larger.

But the population is far less than that of the Central Plains.

The vast grassland is boundless, but the population it can support is extremely limited.

This includes both significant factors such as geography and climate, as well as man-made factors such as years of fighting on the grassland.

All in all, the Hunye tribe, with a population of more than 10,000, is already considered a truly large tribe on the grassland.

Almost all the people on the grassland, regardless of gender, age or status, were soldiers.

The Hunye tribe, with more than 10,000 people, can raise a light cavalry force of thousands or even tens of thousands of people in an instant.

Among the Southern Xiongnu, whose population is small and power is not as strong as before, and on the grasslands south of the desert, it has become a force that cannot be underestimated.

However, Luyi and the Hunye tribe not only had no conflicts or disputes, but also had in-laws and an alliance of interests. They hoped that their father-in-law's tribe would become as powerful as possible.

In this way, his interests will also increase.

So many guests suddenly arrived in the thriving Hunye grassland.

Under Hesuto's deliberate guidance, Lu Yi and others felt themselves trapped in a sea of ​​enthusiasm.

Strong liquor that burns the throat, sizzling and greasy roasted beef and mutton, and magnificent and exciting wrestling performances.

Of course, there was also the unrestrained and enthusiastic nature unique to the women of the grassland, which allowed the thousand young and energetic men who followed Lu Yi to fully appreciate the selfless dedication of the Hu people.

After the welcoming crowd dispersed, the chief of the Hunye tribe, Hexutuo, and the young chief Hatler dismissed everyone and discussed with their closest ally and relative, Lu Yi, the confidential matters between the original four alliances and the three alliances after Huang Yi was kicked out.

They first discussed the increasingly large-scale horse smuggling trade and finalized some details of the transaction.

The topic naturally turned to the current chaotic situation on the grassland.

The trade between the Luyi and Hunye tribes had been going on for more than a year. Except for the half-year period when it was forced to be interrupted due to the Xianbei Rebellion, the trade between the two had always been very harmonious.

Now, Zhang clan has become a vassal of Lu Yi. Zhang clan obeys Lu Yi's orders and follows his lead. Therefore, the so-called three-family alliance is actually just a bilateral trade between Lu Yi and Hunye clan.

The transaction between the two parties is now proceeding as planned.

Just leave the specific trade affairs to your subordinates.

Although Lu Yi urgently needed to expand the horse smuggling trade to increase profits and purchase large amounts of grain.

But for things like this, just explain it to the caravan.

The reason why he left Pingcheng, where he had just taken office not long ago, and traveled hundreds of miles deep into the grassland, in addition to discussing the details of the transaction with his cheap father-in-law, was actually because the grassland had been a little unstable recently.

exactly.

After taking advantage of the Han army's victory over the Xianbei and fleeing to the northern desert in the Xianbei's warehouses, the Southern Xiongnu royal court, which had reoccupied the southern desert area, was somewhat unstable.

Since the Southern Xiongnu were conquered by the wise and capable Emperor Wu of Han hundreds of years ago, they migrated south and submitted to the Han Dynasty, becoming a guard dog kept by the Han Dynasty at the border.

However, unlike loyal family dogs, the Southern Xiongnu were willing to serve the Han Dynasty as dogs under certain conditions.

The prerequisite for him to be willing to be a watchdog is that the man who owns the dog must be strong enough.

Therefore, for hundreds of years, although the Huns engaged in some small-scale looting, they generally lived in peace.

However, all this changed after the rise of the Xianbei people, another watchdog originally kept in captivity by the Han Dynasty.

Previously, the Xianbei people defeated the Han Dynasty's expeditionary force outside the Great Wall.

Later, another Xianbei army of 300,000 broke into the Great Wall, causing chaos in Hebei and killing countless people.

I watched as the originally majestic dog owner was knocked to the ground by the guard dog he raised and was bitten several times.

The Southern Xiongnu royal court immediately discovered the weakness of the Han Dynasty.

After discovering that the collar that had been restricting his freedom had become fragile, the Chanyu of the Southern Xiongnu began to have inappropriate thoughts.

Therefore, when Lu Yi received the message from his father-in-law, he immediately made a prompt decision and went deep into Mo Nan to discuss countermeasures with He Xutuo face to face.

"Ugh……"

"Now the Chanyu's exploitation and military service against our tribe is getting worse day by day."

"It looks like I have some thoughts that I shouldn't have!"

Although Hexutuo was just a Hu man, the fact that he could live to the age of old age in the grassland where the average life expectancy was lower than that in the Han Dynasty is in itself a symbol of wisdom.

Without wisdom, if you only had luck, you would never live to be as old as Hesuto with gray hair.

He guessed the Xiongnu Khan's obvious ambition just by his every move.

"Haha, if I were the Southern Xiongnu Chanyu Qiangqu and had ambitions, this would be a good opportunity for me to act!"

Lu Yi chuckled. Although he despised the Qiangqiu's treachery in abandoning their suzerain country, he couldn't help but nod secretly at his decision.

"There was no way Qiang Qu could have sat on the throne of the Southern Xiongnu Chanyu."

"It's just that the Hu Xiongnu General Zhang Xiu killed the previous Southern Xiongnu Chanyu Hu Wei without authorization two years ago, and appointed Qiang Qu as the leader of the Southern Xiongnu."

"It's just that Zhang Xiu was executed by the imperial court for killing the ruler of a vassal state without authorization, and there has been no time to appoint a new Hu Xiongnu Lieutenant General."

"According to Han law, the Lieutenant General of the Xiongnu Guards not only had the duty to protect the Southern Xiongnu Chanyu, but also had the responsibility and authority to control and monitor the Southern Xiongnu Chanyu."

"Although the so-called Southern Xiongnu Chanyu is the ruler of a country, he is surrounded by dozens of fully armed sword and shield soldiers arranged by the Xiongnu Lieutenant General day and night. If he shows the slightest disobedience, he can be easily killed. He lives in fear every day."

"This is also the reason why Zhang Xiu was able to kill the former Southern Xiongnu Chanyu so easily."

"The Qiang Qu was no longer under control, and not only did he gradually seize power from the Southern Xiongnu royal court, but he also gradually developed a rebellious heart."

"In addition to the Xianbei invasion, Hebei was in ruins, and the imperial court was unable to extend its tentacles to the south of the desert. The Xianbei, who had been frightened by the Han Dynasty, fled north in panic, and took the initiative to return the south of the desert to the Qiangqu."

"If I were him, I would also choose to break away from the Han's control and become independent again when neither the Han nor the Xianbei have time to care about him, and even recover the northern desert and restore the former glory of the Xiongnu."

Lu Yi's evaluation was objective and fair, which made Hartler, who originally had only a vague understanding of the matter, nod his head repeatedly and suddenly feel enlightened.

"After hearing what my brother-in-law said, I finally understood why Qiang Qu was making so many big moves and oppressing the tribes we belong to more and more severely. It turns out that he wanted to regain power!"

"Not bad!"

Lu Yi nodded and continued.

"Although both the Han and Xianbei suffered losses, a lean camel is still bigger than a horse."

"There is no need for the Han people to personally intervene. We only need to appoint a new Lieutenant General to protect the Xiongnu and arrange for dozens of swordsmen to be on guard at all times. This Qiangqu will no longer have the possibility and courage to cause chaos."

"However, if you want to disobey the Han Dynasty's appointment as the General of the Guards of the Xiongnu, you will inevitably arouse the emperor's thundering wrath, and the two countries will tear each other apart and go to war again."

"Although Hebei is in a state of decay now, the Southern Xiongnu were defeated by the Xianbei before they entered the pass last year, beheading more than 50,000 young and strong men, so their vitality was severely damaged."

"Whether Qiangqu wants to make a difference or fight against the Han army, he urgently needs to expand his military strength and increase his power. Therefore, he is wantonly exploiting the tribes that are affiliated with his court and your military service, demanding money and people!"

"Even if we expand our power, it will only weaken your tribes."

"What my dear son-in-law said is absolutely correct!"

He Xutuo couldn't help but sigh when he heard this, and his old face was full of sorrow.

"My Huye tribe has sent thousands of war horses, tens of thousands of cattle and sheep, and thousands of warriors."

"This Qiang Qu is still asking for too much. It seems that he will not give up until he has squeezed our tribe dry."

"Some time ago, a tribe that was unwilling to continue supplying tribute was directly attacked by Qiangqu and his men. In order to make an example of them, Qiangqu killed everyone in the tribe, even children who were not taller than the wheels of the cart. Many tribes were frightened and continued to pay tribute obediently despite the pain."

"It's a pity that the family business accumulated by several generations of our Hunye tribe for hundreds of years will probably be completely sucked away by this Qiangqu this time!"

In the minds of the Hu people, loyalty is nothing more than the endurance of being forced to bow their heads when they cannot win.

Therefore, although Lu Yi's father-in-law Hexutuo was the tribal chief under the command of the Southern Xiongnu Chanyu, he had no respect or loyalty in his words towards such an ugly king, but instead was filled with deep hatred.

Lu Yi guessed that if Qiang Qu stood in this big tent, the father and son, who were being exploited and were a little jealous, would probably step forward and bite his neck fiercely.

……

(End of this chapter)